According to a communiqué made public today, the president of the European Parliament was accompanied by Christine Verger, his cabinet director, and Giovanni Salimbeni, director of the parliament's Rome office.

The communique states that the president, "above all wished to send greetings to the Holy Father John Paul II and best wishes for a speedy recovery, both from himself and from the European Parliament.”

"President Borrell Fontelles then explained some of the parliament's current activities and the prospects arising from the enlarging of the European Union, expressing the hope that the constitutional treaty will be ratified by all States.”

The communiqué goes on to point out that, “The president, in harmony with the position the Holy See has always maintained, was careful to underline the nature of the European Union as a 'moral force,' with its own message of ever valid civilization, to be proposed even in the broader international context.”

The conversation also touched on problems arising from the presence of three great European bodies - the European Union, the Council of Europe, and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) - with agreement on the need for a clarification of their relationship.”

It continued, saying that, “The cardinal Secretary of State also highlighted the importance of the apostolic nunciature accredited to the European Union, in order to favor fruitful dialogue on issues of current importance."